We sought your support and you gave it generously: Now what?

First and foremost, this is all about gratitude. We can only humbly thank our readers for giving us such incredible support when we direly needed it. Here is a synopsis of the past year in the life of The Lakeville Journal Company. 

When The Lakeville Journal Company decided to address the ongoing financial difficulties it, along with just about all other local community journalism entities across the country, was facing as of June of 2019, we made a plan to come up with the best strategy we could formulate. We started with independent and wide-ranging face-to-face discussions with community leaders from all political sides across our readership area. 

That led us to the path of first publishing a survey for our readers in October 2019. We had a helpful and large, connected response to that survey, with readers telling us what they most valued about having community weekly news available to all in the region. After analyzing those surveys, we moved forward with a membership model, based on one that was used by a weekly newspaper in California that had been successful for several years. We rolled out that campaign for support in November 2019, publishing a structured approach to supporting local journalism for four consecutive weeks in our newspapers, The Lakeville Journal and The Millerton News. 

Our readers came through in a way we could not have expected, and for which we are profoundly grateful. Thank you to all our readers who responded in such an encouraging way. To date, we have received more than $150,000 in direct support from our readership. Without that financial help, our little media company would not have made it through the first half of 2020. 

With the onslaught of COVID-19, the company applied for and received a PPP loan, in the amount of $146,643, which we anticipate becoming a forgivable loan as we have followed all the requirements. That program gives small businesses like ours a fighting chance to survive. So, without a pause, during the pandemic, we continued to pay our employees, and to publish both The Lakeville Journal and Millerton News weekly, TriCorner Real Estate tabloid monthly, and two special sections, Towns & Villages and Compass Community Food, for which we were able to find enough advertising from our local businesses. We firmly believe that local news is more important now than ever, especially with the size of the communities we serve. Many thanks to all who made this possible.

We also ran support banners for first responders and health-care workers that received good advertising support, from which we gave 10% of the proceeds to three area nonprofits over three weeks: Sharon Hospital, Salisbury Visiting Nurse Association and Sunday in the Country Food Drive. Our goal during this time of pandemic has been to get the most accurate news out to our readers and to build community with those special banners and sections. 

We reduced the number of newspapers we put out on the newsstands during the first wave of COVID-19, in April and May, as a safety measure, when many shops were closed and people were going out less. We then increased to normal numbers at the beginning of June.

Now the company is in the process of analyzing its next steps. In addition to its current board members, who have been the company’s ownership since 1995 and brought us forward with generosity and dedication, an advisory board has been formed that will help in that task. The options include continuing with the membership model, perhaps with a different definition more geared to our region; applying for nonprofit status; or some combination of those two. 

We are grateful to all those who have sent, and continue to send, us contributions, as well as to all those who subscribe to or purchase the newspapers on the newsstand and to all those who were and are able to advertise with us. We are deeply thankful for the generous response from our community. As we continue to look for the best way to fulfill our mission of serving you, we will be publishing a survey of our readers once again this summer. This will help confirm our decision making in our financial model that we will roll out this fall. We look to you, our readers, once again to weigh in with your thoughts as we pursue continued life for this form of local journalism.

Latest News

Amenia Recreation Commission hears plans for two new parks

Conceptual design plans for two new parks were detailed by Jane Didona of Didona Associates at the regular meeting of the Amenia Recreation Commission Tuesday, Feb. 27.

Leila Hawken

AMENIA — About 10 residents attended the regular meeting of the Recreation Commission Tuesday, Feb. 27, to hear details of conceptual plans for recreational enhancement through the phased development of two town parks.

Landscape architect Jane Didona of Didona Associates in Danbury, who has been working with the commission for more than a year, presented conceptual design plans for the dual projects, expected to be mulltiphased over several years of development. One project, Amenia Green, would improve the town-owned land adjacent to the Town Hall, and the other, Wassaic Park, would develop acreage abutting Wassaic Brook and the Rail Trail and include a new playground adjacent to Gridley Chapel.

Keep ReadingShow less
Nuvance hospital system to merge with Northwell Health

Sharon Hospital would become part of a larger regional health systems with 28 hospitals.

Yehyun Kim/CTMirror.org

Nuvance Health, which owns four hospitals in Connecticut and three in New York, will merge with Northwell Health to form a larger regional health system across two states.

Together, the companies will own 28 hospitals and more than 1,000 sites of care and employ 14,500 providers.

Keep ReadingShow less
The Creators: An interview with filmmaker Keith Boynton

Keith Boynton, left, with Aitor Mendilibar, right, the cinematographer who shot “The Haunted Forest” as well as “The Scottish Play” and “The Winter House.” In the background of is Vinny Castellini, first assistant director.

Submitted

Keith Boynton is a filmmaker who grew up in Salisbury, Connecticut. He attended Salisbury Central School, Town Hill School, and Hotchkiss. He has made numerous feature films including Seven Lovers, The Scottish Play, The Winter House, and is just wrapping up a new film, The Haunted Forest, which is a horror/slasher movie. Boynton has made numerous music videos for the band Darlingside, and for Alison Krauss. He is a poet, a playwright, and comic book art collector.

JA: This series of stories The Creators focuses on artists, their inspiration, and their creative process. Keith, what was the seed that got you started?

Keep ReadingShow less
Millerton director is an Oscar nominee

Arlo Washington in a film still from the Oscar-nominated short "The Barber of Little Rock."

Story Syndicate

John Hoffman, a Millerton resident, has been nominated for his film “The Barber of Little Rock,” which he co-directed with Christine Turner, in the Best Documentary Short Film category at the upcoming 96th Academy Awards.

Distributed by The New Yorker and produced by Story Syndicate Production in association with 59th & Prairie, Better World Projects, and Peralta Pictures, “The Barber of Little Rock” explores the efforts of Arkansas local hero Arlo Washington, who opened a barbershop at 19 years old and, with a mission to close the racial inequality gap in his community, went on to found the Washington Barber College as well as People Trust Community Federal Credit Union. Washington’s goal is aiding his primarily Black neighborhood, which has historically been underserved by more prominent banking institutions.

Keep ReadingShow less